Teen Sentenced to Prison For Lasering a Helicopter

[Guest]

Idiots lasing low flying aircraft (many on landing approach) and helicopters have cause laser pointers to banned in Australia. They are now under the same licensing as handguns, requiring demonstrated special needs requirements for licensed use. A public art exhibition that used green lasers to light objects in a mall had the lasers turned off when it was revealed they could glare the vision of a helicopter pilot at over 10 kilometers away. This was caught on camera as a reporter and camera crew were in the helicopter at the time. The light is a very bright and intense light that could easily interfere with the pilot and their control of the aircraft.

Lasing cars and aircraft is a VERY stupid thing to do. Could you imagine the result of an airliner on landing approach crashing into a densely populated suburb after the pilot(s) were temporarily blinded by someone's idea of a JACKASS prank?

As the sign says: "DO NOT LOOK INTO LASER WITH REMAINING EYE!"

 

[beayn]

I'm curious to know how they could possibly have known which car it was? It said it was in a city, no matter the population that's a lot of cars to choose from. Did the chopper follow them after the event?

 

[Guest]

Messing with air traffic in this day and age?. Hold him under the patriot act indefinitely at Guantanamo. His age does not matter. If I were the pilot I may have assumed it was a targeting device.

 

[tayb]

Wow. This guy was in a moving vehicle, with a laser pointer, and he managed to hit a moving helicopter? That is impressive.

 

[devious_x]

Wow the way they reacted, you would think the guy had some kind of "Death Ray"! At least it wasn't a "Ronald Ray Gun" ; )

 

[xrodney]

[citation][nom]Tmanishere[/nom]Green laser is apparently strong enough to hit the clouds. Google green laser.[/citation]
Sure it can, but not with crappy 1mw laser pointer which usually dont have right focused beam that and is hardly visible on distance 20+ meters.

 

[im_thelumberjack]

considering vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence under penal code 192 has a maximum of 12 months in prison in the state of California. I find it insane that negligent use of a laser pointer that led to no deaths or injuries has led to a harsher prison term. I have no faith in the California justice system.

 

[Tmanishere]

[citation][nom]xrodney[/nom]Sure it can, but not with crappy 1mw laser pointer which usually dont have right focused beam that and is hardly visible on distance 20+ meters.[/citation]

Who said anything about 1mW laser pointer being used?

 

[mrmez]

Holy shhhhmokes!

A dumb ass for sure, but 15 months in a federal prison!!!
I could probably break into you house, bash your mum and get less than that.

 

[MAGPC]

Seriously, you've ruined his life for nothing.
Punish him as you wish, but not the prison and not for this long period.

 

[Chrys]

So an adult takes a laser pointer in his car and goes someplace where he expects a helicopter to be flying. Then lases the windshield of the pilot, and there are people here who don't think he realizes that the helicopter can crash? This guy was out trying to take the vision away from a person flying. This was attempted murder, and not just for the pilot. He was trying to kill the pilot, any passengers and anybody on the ground near where the pilot was flying. He deserves what he got.

 

[distanted]

They need to smack down all these idiots buying a 60X laser pointer just to screw with pilots. Anybody that gets their entertainment by endangering the lives of others deserves 16 months of corrective motivation. Just because it's easy to assault an aircraft with blinding light doesn't mean the sentencing needs to be reduced for the dumb@sses who choose to do it.

 

[jamesedgeuk2000]

[citation][nom]aevm[/nom]Only 15 months? This guy attempted multiple murder for fun. I'd say lock him up and lose the key.[/citation]

Why the hell are people down rating this guy? If the police could prove the guy with the laser targeted the helicopter deliberately and not accidentally he would be tried for attempted murder which is a much longer sentence than 15 months.

 

[jamesedgeuk2000]

[citation][nom]steelbox[/nom]Seriously? A "normal" laser has no power to reach a helicopter that high up. That should have been a hell of a laser.[/citation]

It was a green (high power) laser, had it hit the pilot in the eye it could have blinded him

 

[youssef 2010]

cats or presentations

 

[youssef 2010]

[citation][nom]vittau[/nom]This guy has some serious aiming skills though.[/citation]

loool

 

[tommysch]

[citation][nom]jamesedgeuk2000[/nom]Why the hell are people down rating this guy? If the police could prove the guy with the laser targeted the helicopter deliberately and not accidentally he would be tried for attempted murder which is a much longer sentence than 15 months.[/citation]

Damn, if a laser was capable of bringing down a plane the Iraqis would replace their RPG-7s...

 

[Tmanishere]

[citation][nom]TommySch[/nom]Damn, if a laser was capable of bringing down a plane the Iraqis would replace their RPG-7s...[/citation]

I thought about that too, but it'd be much easier to gun down/drop a bomb on those idiots.

 

[ionut19]

I guess that stupidity has no limits.

So..if i take a remote at night witch sends commands to the TV in infrared light spectrum, and there is a police helicopter surveying the area, they use infrared cameras for low light vision, and i point the remote at them and press a button i will go to jail?

Ha ha ha..again, "stupidity has no limits".

The simple truth, people use laws in their favor, a cop that kills somebody get's away because he is a cop and if a boy plays with something common as a small laser powered by 3 smaller then the finger nail batteries goes to jail in a federal prison.

Someone should beat the crap out of those lawyer that helped condemning that boy and the judge.

There are no signs that say don't point lasers at helicopters anywhere!

 

[ionut19]

I guess that stupidity has no limits.

So..if i take a remote at night witch sends commands to the TV in infrared light spectrum, and there is a police helicopter surveying the area, they use infrared cameras for low light vision, and i point the remote at them and press a button i will go to jail?

Ha ha ha..again, "stupidity has no limits".

The simple truth, people use laws in their favor, a cop that kills somebody get's away because he is a cop and if a boy plays with something common as a small laser powered by 3 smaller then the finger nail batteries goes to jail in a federal prison.

Someone should beat the crap out of those lawyer that helped condemning that boy and the judge.

There are no signs that say don't point lasers at helicopters anywhere!